Papa Don't Preach
by CastielOfTheBees
Summary: 18 year old Dean Winchester, son of a God fearing man and 17 year old Castiel Novak, son of a preacher find each other in a small town where being gay is worse than murdering your neighbor. Will they be able to find a light in the darkness that has been cast over their lives?
1. Chapter 1

The Sunday summer heat was nearly unbearable, beating down upon the people foolish enough to stand out in the open. Unfortunately for Dean Winchester that's exactly where he found himself, out in the open. His once, freshly pressed white button down shirt ((The only thing church worthy that he owned.)) was now sticking to him where sweat had drenched through the fabric and his stiff, gelled hair was now flat and limp, due to the moisture in the air. The day was just as miserable as he was, and the stuffy church atmosphere wasn't helping. If it were up to him he wouldn't be here at all, but his father insisted that they attend the church charity event and help out the community as much as they possibly could, and he was never one to tell his father no.

This particular church charity event was to raise money for new front row pews, the ones with fluffy little cushions reserved for the Pastors family. Dean of course could care less about the comfort of the first family's rear ends, it all seemed a bit selfish to him but there was nothing he could actually do about it, so he just smiles when appropriate and lifts the heavy objects for the frail elderly women of the church. By the time that they had finished setting everything up for the silent auction, the cake walk, the bake sale and the childrens game booth he was positivly drenched in his own sweat and panting like a dog, but there was no time to stop and search out something cold to drink. They still had a cotton candy machine, pretzel stand and dunking booth to set up. So instead of taking the break he so badly needed he continued on, picking up the heavy machine used to make the sweet candy floss and toteing it to the designated spot, sitting it down with a heavy thud.

A soft tapping on his shoulder pulls his mind away from the heat induced haze that he was slowly drifting into and he turns his head to look over his shoulder. What he see's there stuns him, taking away the polite, yet clipped, response that he had prepared. His already dry tongue becomes somehow even dryer and sticks to his mouth, rendering speech impossible. Instead all that leaves him is a rushed breath of air, that sounds suspiciously like a deflating balloon. There, standing behind him with an ice cold bottle of water in his hand was the most beautiful boy he had ever seen in his life. Shaggy brown, almost black hair -desperatly in need of a comb- covered bright blue eye's, like the ocean on a clear day. The boy was tall, just slightly shorter than Dean himself and obviously timid if his withdrawn posture was anything to go by. The small, shy smile on his face sends a flush of warmth straight into Deans stomach, pooling in his veins and rushing through him until his heart is feeling especially warm.

"H-Hi...I um...I saw that you were working really hard...a-and you hadn't had a break yet...so I th-thought you'd maybe need a drink." A soft, sweet blush spreads across the boys cheeks as his teeth scrape nervously across his bottom, slightly chapped lip, only making him appear even more frail than he was before he spoke. The smile that breaks across Deans face is no doubt the goofiest thing, showing off teeth and gums and causing his eye's to crinkle at the corners, but he doesn't care. Not right now anyway. No, right now his focus is honed in on the adorable creature standing in front of him. His sexuality is no secret to him, he'd always know that he had a soft spot for boys as well as girls, but he'd never been so affected by either gender before. In school he was the cool guy, on the baseball team, sitting at the popular table. Of course, they didn't know about his love of the male figure. Nobody knew, not even his little brother Sammy, and they were super close. In this small town the small sin of loving someone with the same parts as you was just as bad as murder, and John Winchester had no doubt drilled that bullshit into Sammy's head. Right now he didn't care. His charm was turned all the way up and for once he wasn't ashamed.

"Wow...I mean, yeah, thanks! I'm pretty sure if I keep going with out a drink I'm going to collapse." He reaches a trembling hand out and takes the bottle of water from the other boy, twisting the cap open in one swift move, bringing it to his lips and taking a long swig. He drains half of the bottle in one gulp and pours the rest of the bottle over his head, cooling him down immediatly and drenching his white shirt. He'd be lying if he said that he wasn't partially showing off, hoping the other boy was paying attention to the set of abs, formed by vigorous baseball work outs and weekends at the school gym, that were now completely visiable through the drenched fabric. He lets out a soft breath of relief and opens his eye's to look down at the shorter boy. If the wide eyed look and deep blush on his cheeks is anything to go bye Dean is pretty sure that he was paying attention. Which also means that at the very least the boy was into guys as well as girls. This conclusion causes him to smirk before tossing the empty bottle into a nearby trash can, flexing his toned arm muscles as he does so.

"So, I don't think I've seen you around here before. Are you new to the church?" The question seems to catch the other boy off guard as he looks up at Dean with wide blue eyes, as if the answer to his question is obvious. A whole minute passes before either of them speaks, the silence makes Deans heart hammer in his chest and his stomach tie itself into knots. Just as he's about to turn away and get back to work, so that he can pretend this never happened, a small voice catches his attention. His eye's snap back to the boy in front of him and what he see's there melts his heart. Hunched shoulders and a defeted look make up the aura of his new friend, as if he's done something wrong and he's waiting to be punished.

"I'm sorry, what was that? I didn't hear you." The other boy jumps and then looks back up at Dean once more, this time he takes a deep breath and squares his shoulders, faking confidence.

"I said, I'm not new to the church...M-My fathers the pastor. I had assumed that since you were helping with the fundraiser you were a regular member of the church. I'm there every Sunday, in the front with my family..." Once he's finished his little decleration he deflates again, taking any chances Dean thought that he might have had with him.

"Oh, I um...I actually am a regular member of the church, I just um...don't exactly pay much attention to be honest. My Dad makes me come and I usually just kind of...drift away during the sermon." The confession comes rushing out of his mouth before he can think to stop it and after it's already out he's kicking himself and cursing mentally. "Oh! I'm sorry, that was probably really offensive, I mean. I didn't think before I decided to let my mouth get away with me. I'm kind of an ass that way." As soon as the curse leaves his lips his eye's widen and he looks around, waiting for someone to scold him. "Crap. Sorry. I...I'm really bad at this...and now I've made a complete fool of myself. Geez. Shut up Dean." A small giggle breaks his awful string of rambles and automatically he freezes, the sound warming up his insides and causing his heart to leap nearly into his throat. It's got to be the single most adorable sound he's ever heard and by damn it, he's going to make damn sure he hears it again.

"Dean...Well, at least I got a name out of all of that...don't worry. I'm not offended by your lack of attention to my father or your use of the word ass." The bright smile that shines back at him now is nothing like the shy, timid thing that greeted him at first and it nearly takes his breath away. He stares for a moment before realizing that he probably looks like a giant creep and looks away, clearing his throat.

"Well, you've got my name, what do I call you?" Once again the other boy pulls his bottom lip into his mouth between his teeth and then pulls it out again, his eye's shift back and forth, scanning the crowd of elderly women and small families before they land back onto Deans sun reddened face.

"C-Castiel...my name is Castiel." Castiel's voice, though timid, is deep and husky, and it makes it's way down Dean's spine and straight to the pit of his stomach right above his groin where a small familiar heat pools. The feeling causes Dean's cheeks to heat up even further, traveling across his face and down his neck, making his freckles stand out even more in the hot afternoon sun. His over active teenage mind drags out at least 20 different scenario's within the span of a single moment but he catches himself before the last, most innapropriate scene plays into something to dirty. It wouldn't serve him well to pop a boner in the middle of a church function. He forces his attention back to the very real star of his fantasies and nearly curses out loud at the adorable little head tilt that greets him.

"S-So, Castiel. That's a pretty strange name. I don't think I've ever heard anything like it. A bit of a mouth full really, you mind if I call you Cas?" Luckily for him the sentence comes out slow and steady, like he's actually gained control of his slipping composure and he silently thanks whateverGod is listening that he doesn't sound like a complete moron.

"Yes well, my father is a pastor after all and Castiel is the Angel of Thursday. My brothers all have biblical names as well. Gabriel, Micheal, Lucifer, and then my sister Anael is also of the bible." Castiel gives his shoulders a small shrug as if all of this knowlege is common sense and for a pastors son maybe it is but Dean hasn't read a single page of the Bible and could honestly care less about the names of the angels, well, except for the angel standing in front of him. A small smirk works it's way across Dean's features and before he can stop himself he's speaking.

"Hmm, I guess I've got my very own angel then." The tone of his voice comes off as cocky and sure but inside he's kicking himself. His heart pounds painfully against his rib cage and he's almost positive that Cas can hear it because it sounds like somebody has hooked him up to a loud speaker. His cheeks heat up a heady red that he can thankfully blame on the heat as he looks up into the clouds, begging for any force that will listen to strike him down right here and now.

"Well, I like to think that I'm more of a devil really. Ya know, wolf in sheeps clothing." The smirk that crosses over the other boys face is unmistakable and it catches Dean by surprise. Here he was making the assumption that the shy boy that had greeted him was just that, shy. He never expected anything even remotely sexy to come out of his mouth. The shiver that runs down his spine is instantanious and this time he can't stop it from reaching that coil in his gut. He takes a moment to regain himself, apparently he takes a moment too long because the smirk on Castiel's face drops into a frown.

"Oh. Did I read that incorrectly? I'm awful at social cue's. I had assumed that that was a flirtation and Gabriel says that when a person gives you a flirtation and you are sexually or romantically interested in them that you should send a flirtation back. That is one that he taught me. Was I out of bounds? Perhaps I misjudged you. Are you not a...-" He looks around before finishing his sentence, making sure that he won't be over heard. "homosexual?" The last word is whispered and causes Dean to raise his eyebrows in surprise. Nobody has ever been this blunt with him, not about their sexuality. Especially not in this town, in this town people would prefer to share their streets with a seriel killer as opposed to a member of the gay community, so people kept it on the down low. He's only ever had sex with a few guys and they were all from out of town, young men who had stopped through on a business venture or a vacation pit stop with their families. Maybe not the best way to seek out partners but a guys gotta do what a guys gotta do, even if it does involve lying about your age. A little too late he realizes that he has yet to answer the waiting boys question and by the look on his face he is becoming more and more worried about Deans response.

"Oh, Um yeah. I..I like-" He too looks around to make sure they aren't being eaves dropped on before he contiues quietly. "guys. I'm bisexual I mean and yes, I was flirting with you. Don't worry. I just wasn't expecting that kind of response. I'm not used to flirting with anyone around here that has a dick." His eye's widen again and he flinches a bit, forgetting where he was for a moment. "Crap, I'm gonna put my foot in my mouth one of these days."

Castiel chuckles once more and opens his mouth to speak when he's interupted by the sound of someone calling his name. His eye's travel over to a short man with sandy blonde hair and molten whiskey eye's, a lollipop is shoved into his mouth and one of his hands is shoved into his pockets, the other waving in the air to gain Castiel's attention. The other boy let's out a soft sigh before looking back at Dean.

"Well, I suppose that means it's time for me to go. Um...C-Could I give you my phone number? Perhaps you could call me some time?" The end of the sentence comes off as more of a question than a statment and is finished off with Cas' hopeful eye's focused on him. He gives what he hopes is his brightest smile before he nods and pulls a small, cheap flip phone from his pocket, handing it out to Cas and blushing a bit at the peek into his families fanancial struggles. Cas doesn't flinch though as he takes the phone from Deans hand and enters his number, shooting himself a text message, if the ding from his pocket is any indication. Once he's finished he hands the phone back and gives Dean a small wave.

"Well, I'll talk to you another time. Goodbye Dean." With that said he skirts past Dean, leaving the scent of honey and sandalwood behind. Dean takes a large inhale, letting his eye's drift closed for a moment before opening them again and looking dreamily after the man that he knows is going to end up occupying his late night fantasies. He is startled from his oogling by a small, middle aged women taking his hand, her cocoa skin a steep contrast to his reddened flesh. He looks up into her knowing eye's and raises an eyebrow.

"You better get back to work and quit staring at your _friend_ there. Wouldn't want the wrong person to notice." At first he thinks that maybe he should be afraid but one look at her kind yet stern expression tells him that he has nothing to worry about and he let's himself relax. Of course he could trust Missouri, she's been a trusted friend to the Winchesters since his mother was alive. He bends down to her level and plants a sweet kiss to her cheek before giving her hand a gentle squeeze and a nodd, making his way over to where two other church men are setting up a booth.

"M-M-M. That boys gonna be in for a world of hurt one of these days." With a final shake of her head Missouri saunters away to oversee the dunking booth. There are rumors that the pastor himself is going to take a turn in the tank and she would pay a pretty penny just to see him doused in water.


	2. Chapter 2

A week passes Dean by with no excitement. The benefit carnival had gone off with no problems, just like he knew it would. He doesn't see Castiel again, no texts had come through on his phone and he doesn't receive a single phone call. To be honest he's starting to wonder if he had met the other boy at all. The only proof being the bright blues eye's that had haunted him every night, like some kind of ritual. That's why when Sunday rolls around he's more than eager to get up with the birds and get dressed in that same white button up shirt. His black slacks, though wrinkled at the cuffs from being tossed to the side in his closet, make him look just a bit more grown up. By the time he's finished fussing with his bed mused hair his dad and brother have already gotten up to get ready as well. He takes one more look in the mirror and sighs softly, resigning himself to the waiting he knows he's going to have to do before they can finally leave. To stave off the boredom and anxiety that's creeping into his stomach he goes downstairs so that he can make sure that Sammy has a Pop-Tart ready, so that they can head out the door as soon as everyone's ready.

It only takes him a few seconds to grab a toaster pastry from the pantry and lay it out on the table so that his dweeb of a little brother can see it which means he's got free time and for Dean that's never a good thing. He tends to let his thoughts run away with him on most days, today though his mind is his enemy. It pulls him in with thoughts of near black bed head and shy smiles and quickly morphs into firm, slender hands. Fingers wrapping into the small hairs at the nape of his neck. Softly whispered words wrapped in a sharp, gravel voice. It sends a shiver down his spine, straight to his always eager teenage hormones. He feels himself stir in the almost too small dress pants and nearly curses out loud. Before he can readjust himself or think too much further into the situation, two sets of footsteps come stomping down the stairs. Not long after his little brothers' head pokes out from around the corner, eye's still clouded with sleep though his hair and attire are neatly put together. Behind him stands John Winchester, in all his straight edge, stiff postured glory.

John gives Dean a look of disbelief before moving the rest of the way down the steps and into the adjoining kitchen. On a good day Dean isn't up until the very last minute and then when he finally decides to appear the other two have long since been dressed and gotten their respective breakfasts eaten. Dean gives a small sigh and runs his fingers through his unusually ungelled hair before motioning towards the door with an outstretched hand. John raises an eyebrow and picks his keys up off of the small kitchen counter, glancing at Sam who is currently stuffing half of a Pop-Tart into his mouth and rolls his eye's.

"Alright you two, let's get a move on. Maybe we can actually get a decent seat this time. I'd like to have a few words with the pastor before the service starts anyway. Sam, wipe those crumbs 'offa your shirt boy, I ain't raisin' no caveman. Come on, out to the car. Get the lead out." Before John can even finish his last sentence Dean is rushing past him, grabbing his coat and calling out shot gun before his brother has the chance. He walks quickly to the passengers side of the car and bounces from foot to foot as he waits for his dad to unlock the door and let him in. With a warning glance shot his way John unlocks the car and slides into the drivers seat, Dean slides in right after he does, at least having the courtesy to look apologetic, Sam follows soon after, shoving his already gangling limbs into the back seat, a glare on his face, directed at his older brother. They pull out of the drive way and onto the small road that leads to their old, partially broken down house before John glances over at Dean and then back at the road.

"What's got you jittering like a jack rabbit this mornin' boy? You act like you got a hot date that you can't miss or somethin'." Dean flushes a dark red that spreads all the way down his neck before looking out the window and fiddling with the cuffs of his shirt. His back is military straight in the front seat, something his Dad had taught him from a young age. He knows better than to not answer a question that has been directed at him so he takes only a second to think of an acceptable lie, one that he knows he can get away with. He settles on only telling half of the truth.

"No sir, I've just been waiting to see the pastors son. He and I made friends at the church charity carnival. He brought me a bottle of water and we got to talkin' a little bit before he had to go back and talk to his family. I thought that maybe it would do me some good to make friends with the church's first family. Maybe I could get in good with God that way, better than I'm doing now at any rate. Besides, he was pretty cool. I was thinkin' about maybe seein' if he wanted to go down to the creek or somethin' after church. That is, if he's allowed...I mean...If that's okay with you." John makes a noise of approval before reaching a hand over and clapping Dean on the shoulder, jostling him forward slightly in his seat.

"I think that's a great idea son. We could all use a little more blessing and it would be awful sociable of you to make friends with the Novak boy. The way I understand it he doesn't have many around here. I think it would do you both some good. I'll talk to the pastor myself before church, see if we can't arrange something. I'll make sure to give you a couple-a dollars for some soda and snacks." The small smile that creeps over Deans' face isn't too suspicious to either John or Sammy because neither of them say anything. He suspects that Sammy has actually fallen asleep in the backseat like he does every Sunday morning. One glance into the rear view mirror proves him right and he can't help but to shake his head at the oaf.

A few minutes more see's them pulling into the church parking lot and taking one of the many empty spots beside the large mini van that the Pastors wife drives. They're early, by about half an hour and it nearly shocks Dean when he realizes that for once they aren't one of the last ones here. The Pastor of course is already stationed at the door, speaking with a few of the families that had arrived ahead of the Winchester clan, his eye's meet Johns and widen a bit in surprise before training into the fake welcoming smile that Dean is so used to. He has to refrain himself from rolling his eye's but can't help the sarcastic snort that comes with out his permission. Sammy elbows him in the ribs and he winces, glaring down at his younger brother; The promise of future revenge in his eye's. He receives the second warning look of the morning from his father before he's leading them up the church steps and into the now vacant doorway, stopping to shake Pastor Zachariah's hand.

Dean keeps walking after the brief hand shake, earning yet another disapproving look from his Dad before the older man turns to talk to the Church head, keeping Sammy held beside him as he does. The younger Winchester gives Dean one longing glance before sagging into himself and accepting his fate. With a Cheshire Cat grin and a bounce in his step that wasn't there before Dean takes off in search of stormy blue eye's. He doesn't have to look far before he's rewarded with the sight of Castiel, dressed to impress in a white button up shirt, a blue tie that matches the color of his eye's, and a pair of black slacks. There's a tan trench coat slung over his arm as he speaks with an older man that looks very similar to him. The thundering in Dean's chest is almost too much and he's got the sudden urge to turn back around and head for the door. Before he can even take a step in either direction Cas is turning his head and looking straight at him, a wide grin creeping onto his face.

Dean is frozen to the spot by that smile. It has got to be the single most beautiful thing he's ever seen in his life and he doesn't know how to process that information. The entire world stops and right in that moment it's just him and Cas, who's giving him a small, shy wave and biting down on his lower lip, as if he has any reason to be nervous. It isn't him who's about to walk up to an actual angel and make a complete fool of himself. Everything kicks back into gear at once and the church becomes a bustle of noise around him. He shakes himself out of the chick flick that his mind has thrown him into and forces his feet to move forward, towards the only person to ever make Dean Winchester feel like he isn't worthy, and of course the closer he gets the more beautiful this kid becomes. He's so screwed that it's not even funny.

As he steps into Cas' little circle of family they all stop talking at once and he can't help the flush that falls over his face. So he does what he usually does in tense situations, he straightens his shoulders and puffs out his chest in true Winchester fashion. He watches Cas give him a secret once over with his eye's before letting them settle on his face again, that blinding smile has morphed into a panty dropping smirk and once again he finds his mind trying to wander. Before it can get too out of hand however, Cas begins to speak, reaching a hand out and resting it on Dean's upper arm, and he'll be damned if it doesn't feel like a fire is blazing under his skin where Cas touches him, even with his thin cotton blend button up separating their skin.

"Hello, Dean. It's good to see you again. I'm glad you've decided to seek me out as opposed to staying all of the way in the back of the church." His eye's glitter with the mischief that hides behind his words, a secret joke just for the two of them, and it causes Dean's stomach to turn cartwheels, even as he's throwing a smirk of his own back at Cas.

"Well, I couldn't resist getting a better view and I hear the grass is greener on this side." When Cas throws his head back and let's out a hearty laugh he's almost positive that he stops breathing because in the next second he feels like his knees are gonna give out on him. He manages to regain his composure with out much disturbance but dammit, that was one hell of a feeling, something he's never experienced in all of his 18 years on this Earth. There's a smile on his face now that could split him wide open if he isn't careful and he's nearly positive that he looks like the worlds' biggest dork but he can't find it in himself to care at the moment, not with those baby blues drilling a hole into his own grass green orbs. It takes him a moment of staring at Cas to remember what it was exactly that he had come up to the very front of the Church for. His heart lurches in his chest and he has to take a deep breath just so he can speak again.

"Hey Cas, um...you wouldn't wanna maybe...hang out this afternoon would ya? Like..maybe go down to the creek? Or we could go to the arcade...I don't know, just something. My Dad said he'd give me a few bucks for snacks and stuff and I'm pretty sure he's talking to your Dad right now about it...unless of course you don't want to..." Amusement sparkles in Cas' eye's as Dean finishes out his little rambling spell.

"I would love to 'hang out' with you Dean. Nothing would give me greater joy. I could meet you in front of the Church after service is over?" The end of his sentence comes off as a question and it leaves Dean nodding his approval before they're being interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. He turns his head to see Sammy smirking up at him with arms crossed over his chest.

"Dad says that it's time to sit down now and that he talked to Pastor Zachariah and they both agree that you two can do whatever it is that two guys do together after church." Dean gives Sam a sharp look before turning back to Cas with an uncharacteristically shy smile.

"Well..I guess that's my que...I'll see you after though?" Cas nods in confirmation and Dean is back to grinning. He turns around to face Sam again only to find that the little twerp has already rushed back to their Dad, who has chosen a seat in the middle of the church as opposed to the back where they usually sit. He makes his way over and plops down beside his little brother, giving him a sharp elbow to the ribs causing him to hiss. Dean considers it a victory until he receives a smack to the back of his head for his troubles that has Sam snickering in his seat. Little brat. He let's out a small huff before leaning back in the pew to try and get as comfortable as possible. He has no doubt that this service is going to be the longest one he's ever had to sit through.


	3. Chapter 3

Pastor Zachariah starts off this Sunday just like he does every other Sunday; by greeting the members of the church with his fakest smile and his stiffest posture as he stands behind his wooden podium. The air in the building is stale and humid thanks to the Kansas heat and a lack of air conditioning. Sam has already taken up fiddling with the sleeves of his shirt and his father has focused all of his attention to the front of the room. Something feels off about today's sermon, as if it wasn't as planned out as they usually are; maybe a spur of the moment thing that was thought of the night before. Dean settles as far as he can into the back of the barely cushioned pew and crosses his arms over his chest, waiting for the old man to begin his "lesson" for today.

"Today I would like to cover the topic of homosexuality. This is something that has been weighing heavily on my mind as of late. It seems as if the media has made it their mission to turn every saint and sinner in to one of these disgusting human beings, and I say to you, church, that it is time to stand up and say, not today Satan!" There's a small chorus of people shouting their agreement, others still too fogged with sleep to respond. Dean's heart gives a little lurch inside of his chest as Zachariah speaks; the hatred in his words unmistakable and he finds himself swallowing with a dull click to try and clear his throat of the sand paper that has suddenly gathered there.

"Let me start with a scripture. Romans says 'Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.' The lusts of their hearts, brothers and sisters. Lusting after something so unnatural, lusting in general is a sin. It speaks here of impurity and dishonor and ladies and gentleman I can't think of a better way to describe it; Dishonorable, impure. Every man who chooses to lay with another man in the bed of marriage is impure. Every women who takes another women into her bed in lust is impure." He trails off here, but for only a second, long enough for the church to give a boisterous round of amens and yes pastor's. Dean has to refrain from shaking his head, instead deciding to chance a glance over in Castiel's direction. All he can see of the guy is a mob of chestnut hair, it doesn't move, almost as if frozen in place. The sweat has begun to gather on his palms and he can't resist the urge to wipe the moisture onto his black slacks as the pastor begins his sermon once again.

" 'For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another.' Every homosexual sinner that you come across today will tell you that they are created by God himself, and though that may be true God did not intend for them to be embraced, he intended for the homosexual desires to be a punishment for the lust within their hearts, so church do not believe them when they use the devils tongue to try and sway you in the ways of hell! For every homosexual abomination will burn, they will burn with their desire, and anyone who does not resist the pull of the devils words, will burn with them! Even if it's our sons, daughters, brothers, sisters or the man across the street; they will burn!" This time everyone seems to be on the edge of their seats, the elder men and women nod their agreement, throwing their hands in the air and humming in appreciation. The younger bible thumpers, so they call them at school, stand from their seat and take each others hands, eye's closed in a silent prayer. Everyone seems to be eating the pastors' words up, with not a sleepy eye in the group.

" 'Men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper.' There you have it ladies and gentlemen. God has given up on the homosexual community because they have refused to see the way of the Lord. I don't know about you but I wanna get into Heaven." The church erupts in cheers and it causes Dean to flinch out of his skin. This isn't the first sermon he's sat through about homosexuality but it's the first one that's made him feel like there's a weight settled in the pit of his stomach. Maybe it's the massive crush that he's harboring for the preachers son, that's sure to earn him a one way ticket to hell.

"Even if it means turning my back on every queer, dyke and shemale that I come across, I'll do it. Because there's no price in the world too great and no sacrifice too demanding to buy your souls admission into those pearly gates. Now if you will, I want everyone to bow your head in prayer. Pray today that our church be cleansed of every abomination, every deceiver and every unclean thing. Pray that our families be saved from the work of Satan himself! Pray brothers and sisters for the younger generation who is at risk more than any of us older folk for they have not the strength to turn away from hell's temptation." Zachariah bows his head and the rest of the church follows, everyone but Dean that is. He instead takes the time to look around at the over crowded wooden pews and the women and men in their Sunday's best. It all makes him sick to his stomach, how people can sit through something so hateful and not even bat an eyelash; even worse, damn near every person in this god forsaken building air around him feels as if it's growing thinner, pushing in on him and trapping him there. His heart pounds in his chest and his throat is all of a sudden too dry to swallow properly. He's just glad that everyone else has their head bowed and can't see the absolute disgust that he knows rests on his face, everyone that is except for one other person.

A pair of ocean blue eye's burn into the side of his face and he lets the feeling of tranquility that they offer wash over him. The small smirk that plays at the corner of Castiel's lips baffles him. Even after hearing his father destroy who they are in front of the entire church his underlying flirtations are present. Just thinking about what Cas might say if he were sitting next to him causes a wide grin to take over his features and he has some trouble getting it under control before everyone comes back up from their somehow united prayer. He manages however and has to force himself to avert his eyes as Zachariah begins going over ever prayer request they've had in the last week. It seems like the entire church is having their own problems and Dean quickly becomes bored with the droning tone that the pastor takes. Sammy yawns wide beside him and he takes that as an opening to nudge his little brother in the side gently. The small nudge that he gets back tickles a bit but he reigns in the chuckle that threatens to break loose, glaring daggers at Sam as he does. His brothers cocky smile only prompts him to roll his eye's and pull his attention back to the front where it's supposed to be.

When he does he sees the dark brown of Castiel's head duck down to catch something that his older brother, Gabriel if he isn't mistaken, has said to him. Whatever it was must have been amusing because there's an unmistakable glint to his eye's and he's biting on his lower lip to hold in the smile that's threatening to break free and give him away. The sight makes something warm and unfamiliar bloom in Dean's chest. It's an almost overwhelming feeling and he wasn't expecting it to try and knock the breath from his lungs. He silently thanks what ever God is listening that he's sitting down right now because he knows that if he wasn't he would be on his ass in the middle of the floor and that would be something hard to explain away.

From the corner of his eye he sees his father stand from the hard pew, Sam and the rest of the congregation following. His eyes widen a bit and he makes his way clumsily to his feet, swaying a bit at the sudden height change. Sam slides a hand onto his arm to help steady him and shoots Dean a questioning glance that he just brushes away with a shrug in his little brothers direction. Up front Zachariah is saying the parting prayer and wishing everyone a safe journey home. The realization that he's spent nearly the entire church time day dreaming about the pastors son sinks into his mind and he can't find it in himself to actually care because after this disaster of a service is officially over he gets to take Castiel to his favorite spot in the entire world, the secret spot that he found when he was 14 and they'll be away from prying eyes and judgmental assholes. His heart leaps into his throat with the thought of having Cas all to himself for an entire afternoon and he's suddenly even more eager to escape this hell than he was before.

After what seems to him like an entire lifetime they're dismissed completely and he moves quickly out of the tiny pew row and into the aisle that runs down the center of the church. He gives a large stretch, reaching above his head and arching his back to remove all of the kinks in his muscles from being hunched over for so long. His brother nudges past him, followed by his dad who gives him another one of his raised eyebrow warning looks. He smiles sheepishly and lifts his hand up to rub at the back of his neck, lowering his eyes to his feet as he does. Obediently he follows behind his father, Sammy trailing behind him, all the way through the never ending line of church goers waiting to shake their leaders hand; it reminds him of a heard of sheep lining up to be sheered. The thought causes him to snort out loud, earning a questioning look from Sam. He mouths a silent 'tell you later.' and moves forward another few steps until they've reached the front of the line where not only the pastor stands but his entire family. This isn't something that's done every Sunday, usually the first family of the church waits patiently up in the front pew for their father.

Dean catches Castiel's eyes once more and the same feeling from earlier shoots through his veins. It's a miracle that he's able to make his brain work long enough to reach his arm out and shake Zachariah's hand. He tears his eye's away from the youngest Novak so that he can make eye contact with the man whose palm rests firmly in his own. There's that fake smile again, only this time it possesses an almost sinister like quality. Dean raises an eyebrow in shock and retracts his hand, stuffing it in the back pocket of his pants. Zachariah's smile turns into a knowing smirk for a moment before he's all wide grins and piercing eyes once more.

"Ah, Dean, how nice to meet you. Your father here speaks very highly of you, as does Castiel. Though I don't seem to know much about you myself. I hear that you and my son are going to be taking a small fishing trip this afternoon, is that right?" Dean nods his head in confirmation before he feels his fathers' elbow dig sharply into his rib cage, taking that as his last warning to act right he straightens his back and clears his throat, looking the pastor straight in the eye.

"Yes sir, Pastor Novak. I was hoping that Cas and I could maybe grab some snacks and head out to Mud Creek for the rest of the afternoon. Maybe take our poles and waste some time catching fish." From his fathers' side Castiel nods his head in agreement, giving Dean one of his dazzling smiles, the kind that makes him feel all fuzzy inside and makes it hard to pay attention. Zachariah nods his head and gives a hum of approval before clapping Dean on the shoulder and motioning with his eyes for Castiel to go ahead and follow Dean out. The shorter boy takes his place at Dean's side, placing a hand on his elbow so that he can steer him out the door, giving his father and the remainder of the Winchester clan a small nod of farewell. As soon as they reach the door however Johns voice reaches them, his low rumble calling Dean's name and making him turn to stand at attention, an action that's been drilled into his head since he was five years old, a year after his mothers' death.

"Aren't you forgetting something son?" He asks with an amused expression and for the life of him Dean can't remember what it is that he's forgotten. The look of confusion on his face must be evident because a low chuckle sounds from beside him and his eyes dart to the source of the noise. Cas is grinning again, this time it's more smug than anything and that makes Dean squint at him in a glare as he leans forward and whispers lightly in Deans ear; "The money for snacks Dean." Well, doesn't he feel like the sharpest tool in the shed right about now. Instead of embarrassing himself again by opening his mouth and letting words come out he moves over to his Dad and ducks his head.

"Yes sir, sorry. Um..could I have some cash for snacks?" He asks sheepishly, sticking both of his hands into his front pockets and rocking back on his heels. There's a soft rustling of cloth and the sound of paper crinkling before his father is thrusting two five dollar bills under his nose. The amount of money that is being handed to him shocks him, usually he only receives a couple of bucks and that's on a good day. He knows that they're tight on money as it is so taking the two bills makes him slightly uncomfortable, but he would rather take the money and try to save as much of it as possible when they're at the store than to expose their financial troubles to their church leader and his family. His cheeks heat up as he stuffs the cash into his pocket and hurries back over to where Cas is waiting on him. "Thanks Dad, I'll be back home before dark!" With their final goodbyes said and everything taken care of he and Cas head out the door, leaving their fathers to talk among themselves and Sam to stare longingly at their backs.

Outside the air is muggy but clean and it seems like they're an entire world away from where they were only moments ago. There's a very soft wind blowing around them, only stirring up the heat and doing nothing to cool the sweat that's already gathered on their skin. Dean's white shirt sticks to him in the spots that gather the most moisture and it doesn't take long for the feeling to become bothersome. He begins to unbutton his dress shirt before they've even turned the corner away from the church, the buttons come undone quickly beneath his expert fingers and in only moments he's shedding the troublesome garment and wadding it into a ball to stick under his arm. His white under shirt is thin and sleeveless so he's instantly cooler. He chances a glance over at Cas and sees him staring, a deep blush rides up his cheeks and stains his neck red; nobody has ever just stared at him before and he's finding that the intensity of those blue eye's baring into him doesn't make him as uncomfortable as it should. Instead he's filled with the same warmth that he had experienced at the church, the feeling is starting to become one that he looks forward to and it leaves him smiling.

The duel stare only lasts a few moments, which is more than any normal stare should last, before Dean is turning away to hide his smile by ducking his head down to look at his scuffed loafers. He feels Castiel's fingers brush lightly against his own as they make their way down the side walk, passing by houses that Dean has gone by nearly everyday of his life, but today it somehow feels different, like maybe he was meant to be walking along with Cas the whole time and he had just figured it out. He reaches his hand out just a bit, letting his own fingers brush against Cas' in return before clearing his throat and looking up at his new friend again.

"So Cas, how come I didn't see you in school all week? I mean um, it wasn't like I was lookin' for ya or anything...um...I mean, I was looking for you but not in a creepy way..." His rambling stops dead and he clamps his mouth closed, taking a deep breath and looking away embarrassed. Over talking has always been a bad nervous habit of his, often times getting on his fathers nerves to the point where he'd threaten to slap him silly if he didn't shut up. He let's out a breath that he didn't realize he had been holding and open's his mouth to try again. Before he can get a word out though Cas is swerving into his line of view, so that he can look him in the eye as he speaks.

"I'm home schooled Dean, my father seems to think that public schools are too unholy and all of the God fearing schools are too far away or too expensive." He says this with a shrug before falling into step beside Dean once again, the smile never leaving his face. The fact that his rambling didn't scare Cas off or seem to annoy him in anyway baffles and fills Dean with a light feeling and he's about to comment on it when they arrive in front of the small convenience store. Dean looks around, shocked to find that they've already made it to their first stop. Cas pulls the door of the building open and motions with his hand for Dean to go in ahead of him; so instead of standing around and pondering how exactly they got here without him realizing it he steps inside of the air conditioned store, breathing a sigh of relief at the rush of cool air. Castiel follows shortly after him and lets the door swing closed, closing his eyes for a moment to savor the temperature difference. Dean turns to him, looking him over once before turning around and running a hand through his sweat damp hair.

"Um, just grab whatever you want. My Dad gave me ten bucks for snacks and stuff." He looks up, giving Cas a small smile and forgetting about his promise to himself about saving as much as possible before moving towards the rack of chips standing in front of him and scanning his options. He snatches up a bag of Cheeto's and moves on to the candy bars. Out of the corner of his eye he can see Cas searching over the granola bars and small bags of peanuts. Dean rolls his eyes as a fond smirk moves over his face, the choice of healthy snacks as opposed to the junk that Dean's buying reminds him a lot of Sammy who's always bugging him to eat healthier. He reaches forward and grabs some random sugar filled bar of chocolate off of the shelf so that he can move over to the large container filled with soda's and bottles of water. The door to the freezer beside him swings open and causes him to jump out of his thoughts of Cas and he uses the distraction to reach inside of his own cooler to grab a Big Red and a Bottle of Water, letting the door slam shut behind him as he turns to Cas with a large grin on his face, holding up his bounty. The other boy barks out a laugh when he sees the utter joy on Dean's face from the sugary snacks in his arms and holds his own haul out to show Dean. In his grip rests two different kinds of granola bars, a bag of tropical trail mix and two bottles of water.

"Come on man, where's your sugar and greasy fake cheese goodness?" The look that Cas gives him could freeze fire but it only causes Dean to burst into a fit of very unmanly giggles. The sound coming from him makes Cas' lips turn up in the corners as he rolls his eyes and walks past Dean to get to the check out counter. "Let's go before we waste the whole day in the store, giggles." When the nick name leaves Cas' mouth Dean freezes with a small, glare on his face before moving up to the counter to dump the snacks in his arms in front of the clerk. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say Spock."

The reference is clearly lost on the chestnut haired boy so Dean just shakes his head and hands over the $7.84 that he owes the man behind the counter, grabbing up the thin plastic bag and motioning for Cas to take his change from the clerk. Once they've gathered everything and wished the worker a good day they move back out the door into the blazing heat. Dean runs his free hand across his forehead where there are already small beads of sweat building up. Cas looks just as bad off as he does with the beading moisture and it makes him crack a smile as he glances over at him through his thick honey blonde lashes.

"Now, where were we? Oh yeah. We were talking about you." He moves his bag over to the other hand, relieving some of the pressure off of his hand where the plastic handle had been resting before he continues speaking. "So um...the last time we saw each other you gave me your number...I now realize that I forgot to give you mine and um I didn't text first because I'm kind of awkward that way...sorry. I didn't want you to think that I didn't want to talk to you or something. I was actually waiting on you to text me but I guess you can't do that if you don't have my number." Once again he realizes that he's rambling and he let's out a groan, turning his head away and running his free hand through his hair. "Man, I'm sorry. I swear I'm not usually this much of a loser. Usually I can charm the pants off of people. I don't know what's wrong with me today." Cas chuckles beside him and reaches out a hand to grip the handle of the plastic bag, right beside where Dean's rests. Something that he realizes is a way of making contact without actually touching him.

"Well, maybe it's just because you like me." The low rumble of Cas' voice is quiet when he speaks this time, trying hard not to be over heard by anyone who may be near by and Dean is struck by just how right he is. Usually he only talks to other guys so that he can get laid and go home. All he needs to do that is the classic Winchester charm. This time it's different though, he actually wants Cas to like him, as in more than just a sexual way and that thought scares the crap out of him. He stays silent as they turn another corner, away from all of the shops and houses. They reach a small dirt path way, surrounded by so many trees that you almost can't see it if you don't know it's there. Dean takes a deep breath and hoists the bag up over his lower arm to rest in the crook of his elbow.

"Alright, here we go. Just down this path way is Mud Creek. I hope you weren't actually wanting to fish because where I was planning on taking you is a little bit away from the creek bed and we didn't actually bring any poles." He shrugs his shoulders sheepishly and motions with his head for Cas to follow him as he takes off along the trail. They don't speak as they walk the short distance to the water; once they reach the space where they can see the creek he makes a sharp left, off of the beaten path and into the brush. The little brambles stick to his church pants but he can't make himself care because in just a few short steps Cas is about to see the place that's held the most sentimental value to him, even more than his own childhood bedroom. He makes a left turn, walks for a few more minutes and then pushes through a think wall of ivy. Behind the ivy is a beautiful patch of grass, about the size of ballroom. It's filled with many different colored flowers and a few fallen tree trunks that Dean has turned into little seats with his very own, sloppily sewn cushions. The light in this nook is dim, blotted out slightly by the branches and leaves of the trees that envelope it. Dean turns to Cas then, to see his reactions and he isn't disappointed by the wide eyes and slightly opened mouth.

"Dean...this...this is beautiful! How did you ever find it?" He takes a few steps forward, letting his eyes scan the area and all that it offers before turning to Dean, a large grin on his face. "Is this completely private? Are you the only one who comes here?" Dean nods his head and reaches out, taking Cas' hand in his own so that he can lead them over to one of the fallen trunks. He drops the bag onto the ground and plops down on a ragged over stuffed cushion, pulling Cas down so that he's sitting on a matching cushion beside him, keeping their hands together and lacing their fingers.

"I found this place when I was 14. My Dad had been on my ass all day because Sammy had gotten into the garage and accidentally dropped a hammer on his toe while I was trying to do my homework. I had promised to look after him while the old man was nursing a hangover and I let him get hurt, so while Dad took him to the hospital to make sure nothing was broken I grabbed a bag of chips and some comic books and took off. I eventually found myself out here at Mud Creek and it had started raining. I could hear people off down the bank talking and I didn't want anyone to find me so I went off the trail. I walked for a little bit and just so happened to stumble across this. I stayed here for hours just eating chips and reading my comics, no little brother to look after, no Dad telling me to act right. It was nice, so I kind of just turned it into my own little paradise." He finishes telling his little story with a small shrug of his shoulders and reaches down into the bag beside his feet as a distraction from Cas' wide, wandering eye's.

"Dean...You know that Sam getting hurt wasn't your fault don't you? You were only 14, there was no way that you could control a child. Your father was very irresponsible and it was his fault that his youngest son was hurt." Cas gives Dean's fingers a light squeeze before moving closer and taking hold of his other hand as well, stopping him from rustling the bag anymore. He squeezes that hand as well and ducks his head down so that Dean is forced to look him in the eyes. "No part of John Winchesters irresponsible parenting is your fault." The discomfort radiates off of Dean in waves and Cas, bless him, notices and changes the subject by releasing one of Dean's hands and motioning around them. "I have to say I'm honored to be the first person to be shown this remarkable place."

"I've always called it The Dean Cave. Mostly because I was reading Batman the day I found it." His cheeks tint an attractive red color as his lips break into a shy smile. "I'm kind of a nerd that way I guess." With a small breathy chuckle he releases Cas' hand and picks the plastic grocery bag up, sitting it in his lap and rustling through it until he finds his soda and a bottle of water for Cas. He hands the other boy his drink and cracks his own open, taking a long swig, sighing with relief when he finishes and twisting the cap back on the bottle and discarding it beside him with the bag. "I figured this would be a good place to come where we could be ourselves without having to worry about anyone trying to lynch us if we decide we want to kiss or hold hands or something like that."

He realizes to late what he's said and the blush that was on his cheeks only deepens. Cas chuckles beside him and moves even closer, until he's sitting with his upper leg pressed firmly against Dean's. He twists the lid off of his water bottle and takes a small sip before closing it and sitting it easily beside him, turning his body so that his torso is facing Dean. One of his hands reaches out to land directly on Dean's upper thigh and the smirk that was planted on his face earlier returns in full force.

"No need to be embarrassed Dean. I assure you that I am just as interested in you as you are in me. I find your underlying cockiness endearing and those freckles are simply irresistible." As he speaks his upper body inches closer to Dean until he's only an inch or so away by the last word he speaks. His hot breath ghosts over Dean's lips and he can't stop himself from darting his tongue out and wetting his suddenly too dry lips. The action causes Cas to smirk, his eye's fluttering shut as he closes the distance between them and presses his own lips into Dean's in a kiss.

In that moment his entire world comes to a halt. There is no threat of being caught, there is no homophobic community, there is no ex military father. The feeling of Castiel's fingers tangling into his hair brings him back to earth and he finds himself leaning fully into this boy that he barely knows, slotting their lips together in a messy, desperate kiss as he brings his own hands up to cup either side of Cas' neck. His heart stutters out a frantic beat in his chest and his stomach erupts in a frenzy of butterflies. Behind his closed eye lids the light of the balmy afternoon dances in white and pink spots. Sooner than he would like, the need to breathe overwhelms him and he has to pull away. When he focus' back on Cas' face his cheeks are flushed for a completely different reason. Cas is the first one to speak, Dean being too flustered to be able to form a coherent sentence.

"Wow." The one syllable word speaks volumes to both boys as they look into each others' eyes for a lot longer than anyone would consider acceptable for platonic friends. The air around them is still and quiet, neither of them daring to break it with any more than that single word. The silence around them lasts for only a few moments before a cracking twig snaps them both out of the haze they were in. Deans' head snaps around to see what had cause the sudden interruption but comes up empty, that is until a squirrel darts out of the bushes and across the clearing, scurrying up a tree. He can't help it after that, he bursts into laughter, doubling over with the force of it and resting his arms on his knees. Beside him Cas chuckles as well before breaking into full blown laughter just like Dean. The two carry on this way for what seems like forever before finally calming down and looking at each other with matching grins.

"Ya know Cas...I think I might like you." This causes another small, breathy chuckle to leave Cas' lips before he looks up at Dean through thick black lashes and says; "I think I may like you too Dean Winchester."


	4. Chapter 4

After that evening in the clearing Dean and Cas spend as much of their time together as they possibly can, which isn't easy considering Dean has school on the weekdays while Cas is home schooled. Saturday's they take turns spending the day at each others house and then Sundays they attend church, now sitting closer together than before; with John, Sam and Dean sitting in the row behind the first family, John is pleased as punch to be so close to the Pastor now. Dean see's less and less of his friends from the Baseball team, choosing instead to fill their space with Cas. The two are quickly becoming completely inseparable, opting to get to know each other instead of jumping into anything. If they steal kisses every once in a while then who needs to know?

At first Dean had worried about Pastor Zachariah and what he would think about having him at his house; Cas assured him that it wouldn't be an issue as his father was rarely ever actually home. He instead chose to spend his time putting on a face at homeless shelters and orphanages in different places around Kansas. Instead the only one that Dean had to worry about was Michael, Cas' eldest brother. He's a tall, dark haired man who's body language demands respect where ever he goes. At first he was intimidating, now Dean just has fun jerking his chain whenever he gets the chance, usually with the help of Cas' other older brother Gabriel, who is as annoying as they come but pretty funny when the mood strikes him.

This Saturday, roughly a month after they had first met, they find themselves hanging out at Dean's house. It's not very big but he has a back yard with a hammock where they can relax and read their respective media types or talk about anything and everything that comes to mind until it's time for Dean to get up and go fix supper for the three of them. Usually John is off somewhere, either a bar or at the garage he co-owns with their uncle Bobby. Today is no different than any other Saturday afternoon. July has only just begun and it's already hotter than the pits of hell in Kansas. Cas is stretched out along the hammock, his limbs sprawled out around him so that they don't touch and conduct even more heat. He's already shed his white button up short sleeve, now only clad in his white tank top under shirt and a pair of khaki shorts. Dean on the other hand has decided to lay on the ground beneath the hammock, basking in the shade that Cas is providing and the chill from the packed dirt beneath him. He lays there, lazily tracing small patterns on on Cas' back through the netting. Neither of the boys speak, taking comfort in just each others presence. The day is the kind of quiet that you don't feel the need to break, comfortable and content. That is until your annoying kid brother bursts out of the back door flinging around some brightly colored piece of paper, jabbering on about something that you can't understand because he's speaking so quickly.

Dean jolts up, completely forgetting about the other boy resting only inches above him. His head comes into contact with the firm muscle of Cas' back and then just like that there's a loud squeak and another body is laying on top of his own, pressing him firmly into the ground. The air whooshes out of him and refuses to fill his lungs again for a few good seconds as Cas scrambles up off of him, body shaking with barely held in laughter. Dean shoots him a glare that holds no heat and stands from his place on the ground, sucking in a deep breath through his teeth. He stretches his body out and groans, looking over at Sammy to see what it is he's going on about. When he looks over at his little brother though he see's a large grin on his face and the twinkle of his laughter in his eye's. With an annoyed sigh he stomps over to the little twerp and grabs the piece of neon green paper out of his hand, letting his eye's skim over the big bold print. The flier reads 'Kansas State Fair' along the top with a large picture of a Ferris Wheel and fireworks below it. Dean raises an eyebrow and looks back up at Sam before snorting once and balling the paper up; tossing it behind his shoulder. He hears it thunk off of Cas' head and land at his feet before he looks once again down at his little brother.

"Forget it Sammy, I'm not taking you and your little girlfriend to some stupid carnival. Find a different ride or don't go at all; I'm hanging out with Cas today." He reaches a hand out to flick his little brother on the nose before turning back around to his newly acclaimed best friend. What he see's causes his heart to race in his chest and a small smile to play at his lips. Cas is standing there, holding onto the crinkled flier with a tilted head. He focuses his questioning gaze on Dean and holds the flier out to him. Sammy interrupts him though before he can say a word and Dean shoots a glare in his direction.

"Okay, first off, Jess isn't my girlfriend...not yet anyway, but if you take us to this carnival tonight I might actually have a chance to change that. Come on Dean, please! It's not like you and Cas are going to do anything different than what you do every other Saturday night." Sam glances up at him through thick lashes, puppy dog eye's in full force and he can't help but to groan and turn away again, shielding himself from the evil that is Sams pouty face. His eye's land on Cas once more and that sight isn't any better. Cas has jumped on the puppy dog band wagon as well and is throwing Dean his most innocent puppy face; head tilted, eye's wide and bottom lip poking out just slightly. It's the most adorable thing that Dean has ever seen in his life and he knows right then and there that he would give Cas anything in the world while he's got that look on his face. He let's out a sigh and throws his hands up in defeat.

"Alright, you win. We'll go to the stupid carnival, but when we get there I want shrimp and his little girlfriend to make themselves scarce. I can't be seen hanging around with my twerpy kid brother." Sam's face immediately lights up and he pumps a fist into the air, yammering excitedly as he jumps up and down, telling Dean how great he is and how he's going to go and call Jess now to tell her the good news, before running into the house and letting the door slam behind him. Dean shakes his head fondly at his brothers antics and then reverts his eye's over to Cas.

"So, the carnival. Um...that's kinda...dateish isn't it. I mean, you don't have to think of it as a date or anything, unless you want to that is. If you want to it can be a date, I'm totally cool with that but it doesn't have to be. I'm cool with being just friends if you want. Geeze, there I go blabbering again." Dean clamps his mouth closed, flattening his lips against each other until they're nothing but one thin line of white. He turns his head to the side so that he can hide the blush that's slowly creeping up on to his cheeks. The feeling of somebody gripping onto his chin startles him out of his embarrassment and he let's his eye's snap to the owner of the hand that now hold his jaw firmly in place. Cas is staring at him now, a smoldering fire behind his eye's that Dean has never seen before and it causes goosebumps to break out all over his skin. His tongue darts out to lick at his suddenly to dry lips and Cas' eye's follow it's every movement.

"Dean...I would love to go to the carnival with you, and I would love for it to be a date; though I must insist that we keep that part between just the two of us. If we were anywhere besides here it may not be a problem, but the narrow minded people of this town would only make a scene and cause us nothing but grief." He releases Deans chin then and sighs wistfully, looking down at the hard cracked mud of the Winchester back yard and fiddling with the hem of his under tank. A calmness settles over Dean when he looks down at the shorter boy who is all at once shy and bold. It baffles him how this kid can actually exist with out somehow blowing a hole in the universe, what baffles him even more is that this brilliant human being wants to go on a date with him; boring ole' Dean Winchester. The thought causes a smile to light up his face and he can't stop himself from reaching out and grabbing onto Cas' hand, lacing their fingers together and giving them a gentle squeeze before letting go. "Hey, you got it. It's a date and I agree with you man, I don't think we should tell anybody either. Everyone in this town follows the church like a herd of sheep, and you heard that sermon on homosexuality that your Dad gave. It's better left between us until we can do something different."

Cas' face falls into a mask of indifference as Dean speaks, because he knows that it's true. This town is nothing but trouble for people like them and his father just so happens to be the ring leader of the 'hate the gays' campaign. Dean let's his hand drop back down to his side as Sammy once again bounds out their back door, letting it slam shut behind him in his excitement. There's a large grin plastered on his face as he skids to a stop in front of Dean, eye's sparkling with excitement. Dean shoots him a small smirk of his own before reaching a hand out to ruffle Sams over grown locks. "Alright pipsqueak go get in the damn car so we can get outta here. I don't want to be there all night. Your girlfriend better be ready or I'm leaving her butt and you'll have to hold hands with Cas all night." Sam shoots him one of his ever growing bitch faces and rolls his eye's before punching Dean in the shoulder and turning to Cas to speak.

"Don't worry Cas, I'll make sure Dean doesn't drag anything disgusting in on your 'bonding time.' I've seen some of the girls he hooks up with." Sam shivers dramatically and dodges out of the way just in time to miss Dean's hand swinging at his head. He throws his head back in a hearty laugh before dodging back into the house, yelling for them to get a move on as he does. A low growl makes it's way out of Dean's throat as he watches Sam go with narrowed eye's. A chuckle from beside him draws him out of his fantasies of strangling his brother and he snaps his head over to look at Cas. "What are you laughing at, you're the 'disgusting' thing that I'm dragging in." He gives him one of his famous Winchester smirks before pulling his hand back and slapping him on the ass. Once his hand makes contact with Cas' behind and he hears the satisfying squeak come from the other boys mouth he too takes off into the house. "Come on Cas, let's get outta here!"

The fair grounds in Lawrence, Kansas are completely unimpressive, to say the least. The grass is yellow and dead and the heat has dehydrated any moisture that might have been left in the mud patches. Now though, it's packed with people and carnival attractions, all lighting up as the sun begins to set into an only slightly less balmy night. Dean pulls into one of the hand made parking spaces just left of the actual field and parks the car, taking a moment to look back at Sam and Jess in the back seat. "Alright, a few rules before I just let you go running wild. Rule number 1: We leave at 10. It's 7 now so that gives you three hours to do whatever it is you wanna do. Rule number 2: Meet me and Cas back at the entrance at EXACTLY 10. No later. and Rule 3: Don't bug us unless it's an emergency. Got it?" He raises an eyebrow at the two as they nod their agreement before scurrying out of the car and towards the carnival entrance. He sighs and shakes his head, turning to look at Cas with a small smirk before opening his own door and stepping out of the Impala. Once he's stretched all of his muscles out and checked to make sure he has his wallet with the very small amount of money that his Uncle Bobby let him work for a week or two before Cas rolled into his life, he takes off towards the fair himself, Cas catching up to walk beside him.

The line isn't very long, maybe two or three people ahead of them; Sam being one of them, so they only wait in a slightly awkward silence for a few minutes, Dean with his hands in his pockets and Cas fiddling with the hem of his white button down. As soon as they reach the booth where the man is selling tickets he pulls out his wallet, not waiting for Cas to get his own out, and slapping a five down on the counter, effectively paying for ten tickets. The carnie hands them over through the little slot in the glass and Dean takes them with a big grin on his face, stepping to the side and waiting for Cas to follow him. Cas shoots him a shy smile as they begin walking, letting his hand lightly brush against Deans, sending jolts of electricity shooting through his entire body, landing at his heart and making it swell in his chest. His cheeks tint pink, his eye's looking anywhere but at Cas as they make their way into the throws of people enjoying the carnival rides and game booths. His eye's land on a balloon dart game to their right, one of the prizes making him stop and grin before taking Cas by the elbow and dragging him over to where the guy stands, smoking a cigarette and leaning against a beam. He gives them an unimpressed glance before sighing and pulling three darts out of a pouch tied around his waist. "Two dollars for three." He lays the cheap plastic darts on the wooden platform in front of them and holds his hand out, waiting until Dean lays two dollar bills in his open palm before pocketing the money and going back to his cigarette.

With a determined gleam in his eye Dean grabs up all three darts and takes a deep breath, pinching the first one, a flimsy little thing with yellow and white stripes on the fin, between his thumb and pointer finger. He closes one eye and pokes his tongue out from between his teeth as he pulls his arm back, bending his elbow, and then throwing it as hard as he can forward, releasing the dart. It sails through the air, spiraling as it goes, and Dean holds his breath as it makes contact with a dull blue balloon. A satisfying pop echoes around them and he breaks out in another grin, looking to Cas to make sure he saw. The other boy chuckles beside him and bites down on his bottom lip, hands tucked behind his back and a sweet blush decorating his cheeks. Dean almost sighs like a love struck teenage girl but stops himself, turning away so that he can throw the next dart. This time he hits the balloon with a less force causing the dart to bounce off and smack the booth worker in the leg as the balloon pops. Dean chuckles and with a smug smirk in the carnies direction he pulls back and lets the last dart fly, landing dead center of a rather large balloon and taking it out in the same fashion as the last two.

The annoyed worker glares down at them and motions with his hand to the prizes that Dean has to choose from. He looks them over, eye's landing on the over stuffed cartoon like plush bumblebee. The grin from before returns full force as he points to the pathetic looking creature with the cutesy face and the bent antenna, huffing a bit when the guy pulls it down off of a hook and thrusts it in his direction. He snatches it from the mans hands and turns to Cas, holding it out to him as if it's the most exquisite prize to ever be won. Cas' eye's light up in delight as he takes in the little Bee, looking it over for a moment before tucking it close to his chest and grinning at Dean. Before either boy can speak though, they turn from the booth and the prying eye's of the worker and head over towards a large patch of food stands. Dean looks around before darting behind one, pulling Cas with him. It's not ideal, there are trash cans and old food that's been baking in the hot sun but it's private.

As soon as they're cloaked in the shadow of the little metal structure Dean pulls Cas into him, hands landing on the other boys waist, the bee plush squished in between them as he looks down into deep blue eye's. His own twinkle with the smile that has been growing on his face ever since he handed over that little stuffed animal. Before he can even lean forward Cas is surging forward and capturing his lips in a sweet kiss, their lips slotting sloppily against each others and their breaths mingling, twinging together in a small puff. Dean is the first to pull away, fear of being caught spurring his actions. Cas pouts up at him and he can't help but to chuckle as he brings a finger up to caress the apple of his cheek, a small sigh leaving his lips.

"One day Cas, one day I'm going to take you far away from here. To a place where nobody gives a shit what we do. Who we kiss." Cas' eye's soften into a look of fond admiration as he leans his head to the side so that he can plant a small kiss to Deans palm before looking back up into his eye's and giving him a knowing smile. "I know Dean, and I can't wait to leave this place with you." They press their lips together one more time, just a small promise, before pulling away completely and leaving the safety of the shadows, looking around to make sure they won't be spotted as they make their way into the open. What they don't see is the figure looming deeper in the small alley way between food trucks, a smirk plastered over hateful features. Pastor Zachariah's right hand man and the second most hateful man to ever grace the planet; Uriel. He pulls a handkerchief from the waist pocket of his coat and wipes the small splatter of blood from his knuckles, glancing back down at the lumped figure laying at his feet before glaring in disgust at the broken body and turning on his heel, leaving in the opposite direction of Dean and Cas, pulling out a sleek black phone as he does.

After their little sneak away Cas leads Dean over to a giant wheel placed directly in the center of the fair grounds, his eye's wide with excitement. A tremor of fear rolls through Deans body as he thinks about just how high up they're actually about to be. He gives Cas a nervous glance as he runs a hand through spiky hair. "Man, don't you wanna ride something else? Or we could ya know, play some more games or something. Th-This is lame." The excitement drains from Cas' eye's being replaced by a knowing smirk as he leans just a tad bit closer to Dean so that he can whisper in his ear. "Don't worry Dean, I'll hold your hand if you're scared." Dean's face lights up in a deep blush as he looks away from the smug face of his date. "I'm not scared, okay? I just...don't care much for heights." He brings a hand up to scratch at the back of his neck, one of his few nervous ticks. Cas chuckles and pats his shoulder in a faux friendly motion. "It's ok Dean, I won't let you fall out."

The line moves and he's grinning once again, bouncing on his heels as the next cart rolls around; the cart that will lead them to their certain death, Deans sure of it. The wheel worker lifts the bar of the seat and and motions for the two boys to step on. Cas goes with out hesitation, looking at Dean and patting the seat beside him in invitation. Dean let's out a low groan and climbs up into the wobbling death trap beside him. The guy working the contraption lowers the bar down over their laps and Dean jumps as it loudly clicks into place, drawing another chuckle from Cas' lips. He sighs and leans his head back, squeezing his eye's shut as the wheel begins to move them forward. It stops every few seconds on the way up, causing Deans breath to catch in his throat as he imagines them getting higher and higher into the sky. After only a few moments he feels the warmth of someone's hand pressing into his own, his eye's shooting open in fear that someone will see. What he finds as he looks around stuns him; they're all the way at the top of the wheel and the sun is just moving fully behind the fields in the distance. The sky is painted a soft orange and purple and it causes his mouth to drop open in awe. From behind him Cas squeezes his hand once again and he can feel the other boy lower his head down onto his shoulder.

"It's beautiful isn't it? It's to bad we'll only get to see it for a few seconds." Just as he says this the wheel begins to move once again, this time not stopping to let anyone on, as all of the carts have been filled. Deans heart drops and he feels oddly sad to see the view go. He looks down at Cas and every drop of sadness that he felt before leaves, being replaced with an overwhelming joy. One that he's positive he's never felt before now. Before they make it into the view of everyone on the ground he drops a small, soft kiss onto Cas' hair, sighing as it tickles his lips and nose. All to soon they reach the bottom of the wheel once more and Cas is forced to lift his head from Dean's shoulder, releasing his hand as they make another go around the big metal frame. This time Cas simply link their pinkies together and smiles up at Dean, eye's sparkling in the light from multi colored light of the fair attractions. A small smile pulls at the corner of Deans mouth as well as he looks down at this beautiful boy beside him and wonders how exactly he got this lucky.

In this brief moment Dean is content, something he's never been before. There are no questions whirling around in his mind; no wondering if there's better out there. It's just him and Cas and this Ferris Wheel and that's all he needs. His heart gives a heavy thump, knocking him out of his thoughts and he turns his head, a smile plastered on his face, even as they make their way back to the bottom of the wheel and have to unlink their pinkies again. Even as they climb out of the cart and move down the steps at the exit and especially when Cas' face lights up as he gloats about Dean not dying after all. His heart is full to bursting as he just looks at this boy and it's almost over whelming. He let's out a soft breathy chuckle as he shakes his head in amusement and flicks a stray strand of hair from Cas' face.

"No, you're right, I didn't die. I think I actually found something worth living for up on that wheel." Cas' shy smile and dark blush are Dean's reward for saying what's on his mind and he's definatly glad that he did because right now Cas is looking at him like he holds the entire world in his hands; and he vows from that moment on to make Cas look at him like that whenever he possibly can, because there's no better feeling in the world. The two look at each other for a moment longer before breaking into matching grins as Cas reaches into his shirt where he had stuffed that silly stuffed bee at some point, pulling it out and tucking it under his arm as they make their way through the crowd, not once seeing anything out of place or dreaming that just around the corner there's someone waiting to watch them fall. No, right now, all Dean see's is Cas and that's enough to make the entire world seem unimportant.

The rest of their time passes in a blur of fair rides and carnival games. They eat food that is entirely no good for them and chuckle as Dean get's his face painted like Batman. Cas drools over the intricate design of the henna tattoo that now rests up his side, where his father won't be able to see it and mistake it for something sinful, like a real tattoo. Sooner than either boy would like the clock strikes 10 and they're meeting up with Sam and Jess at the front entrance. Neither couple speaks as they make their way to the Impala but Dean notices that Sam and Jess are now holding hands and it brings a soft smile to his face. He motions to them with his eye's, telling Cas to look back and when he does his own face breaks into a grin. They all climb into the car; still quiet, none of them wanting to break the spell of silence. Dean starts her up and pulls out of the field, taking off into the night, not even the radio to interrupt their thoughts.

He drops Jess off first and then Sam, wanting to spend just those few extra moments with Cas before saying goodbye. Now he drives slowly, actually doing the speed limit as opposed to his usual five over. Cas is the first to speak, looking over at Dean from under his lashes as he does. "I had a lot of fun tonight Dean..." Dean reaches over and feels around for his hand, finding it and lacing their fingers together. "Yeah Cas, I had fun too. I um...I wish we could do stuff like that all the time..." A soft knowing smile ghosts over Cas' lips as Dean pulls into his drive way and sits back in his seat, letting the car idol. Cas sighs softly and looks down at their hands. "I want to be with you like this all of the time...not just on dates...Dean, I..." Before he can finish his sentence the sound of the front door slamming shut startles them both apart; causing them to release their hands and look up to see who has interrupted them.

Gabriel stands on the front porch, a knowing smirk on his face and his arms crossed over his chest in mock annoyance as he looks down into the car at the two boys. Dean rolls his eye's and turns to look back at Cas. "I guess I'll see you in Church tomorrow?" Cas gives him a small nod before glaring up at Gabriel who promptly turns to look at the house, his shoulders shaking from his obvious laughter. Before Dean can even process what's going on Cas is leaning across the bench seat and planting a short peck on his lips, slipping from the Impala quietly and heading up to his porch after he does so. The warmth that spreads through Dean from his lips is consuming and pleasant and he has to use all of his will power not to reach up and touch his lips like some teenager in one of those sappy chick flicks. Instead he puts the car in reverse and pulls out of Cas' drive way, turning on the radio and losing himself in thoughts of carnivals and secret kisses all the way home.


	5. Chapter 5

That night at the carnival is one that has been etched into Dean's memory every day for the past week. He gets up in the morning, goes to school, and comes home with a smile on his face. Sammy has been eyeballing him suspiciously over their measly dinners of macaroni and powdered cheese out of the box. Their dad has been more absent here recently but Dean hasn't seemed to notice; not with Friday just around the horizon. Every Friday after school he and Cas meet up at their spot out by the lake and just hang out until the sun starts to set. So Dean wakes up Friday morning, his smile extra big for the occasion as he quickly gets dressed for school; deciding to skip the shower since he had one just the night before. His outfit today is simple, as usual; a pair of worn out blue jeans with holes in the knees, a dull grey t-shirt and his favorite leather jacket to stave off the early morning cold that seems to stick around all year long in Kansas. He does a quick scan of the house one more time before grabbing up the keys to his Dad's old '67 Impala and moving out the door. Sammy takes the bus to school due to starting earlier than Dean so he doesn't have to worry about waiting for his little brother.

The car ride to school is uneventful as usual, he stops off at the closest McDonald's so grab a steaming cup of coffee and a sausage biscuit and then treks on to the only high school in their small town. He parks the Impala in the student parking lot, where the rest of the baseball team parks as well and sighs; slipping off his leather jacket to replace it with the stiff letter mans jacket that lays forgotten in his back seat. Dean steps out into the frigid early summer air and pulls the flaps of his jacket closer around him as he hoists his old ragged book bag up on to his shoulder before making his way through the throngs of students, all of them greeting him in some way. He goes through the motions, saying hi or giving a small wave to everyone he passes until he makes it into the senior hall and only feet away from his locker. He's just about to walk up and stuff everything he possibly can into the small metal container when he hears a scuffle down the hall. The noise grabs his attention and he can't help but to let his head shoot up to scan over the students being harassed by his team mates today.

The small swarm of yellow and red clad bodies is not a surprise, what he is surprised to see however is the tuft of near black hair sticking over their shoulders. Wide blue eye's scan the crowd, looking for anyone that may help him but nobody moves; not even Dean for the longest second, his brain keeping him frozen in place. His co-captain Victor stands on one side of the boy while their first baseman Brady stands on the other side, arm pressed against someone much shorter than him and twice as small. The blue eye's dart to each boy in turn; the irises that make Dean warm from the inside out are now cold and unfeeling as he takes the abuse from two people he has never met. The void is what moves Dean forward, his feet carrying him almost with out his permission. He shoves through the growing crowd and right up to where the two baseball players harass the one person he would give anything for.

It only takes seconds for Cas' eye's to find his; deep blue meeting warm green and thawing almost immediately. Dean gives him a small nod before reaching forward and prying Brady's arm away from Castiels windpipe. His team mate's eye's snap over to him, question burning on his features. "What the hell Winchester? Come to get a piece of the new nerd?" He smirks then, stepping away from Cas to let Dean get his fill of the new meat. Dean meets his glare with one of his own before stepping up and putting his body between the two bullies and his secret lover. "Brady, if you know whats good for you you'll turn the hell away and go torture some other innocent soul. This one's off a matter of fact from now on, they're all off limits. If I see you beating up another kid in this school it will be the last thing you do here. Do you understand me?" The fire that burns behind Brady's eyes as he looks between Dean and Cas is almost tangible but he backs away none the less and nods at Victor to back away as well. "If you think for a second that this is the last time you're going to hear about this you're sorely mistaken Winchester. Take your little bitch and go, but remember, we're on the same team. Captain or not, I'll make your life hell. You and your boyfriend here." With one last glare in their direction he turns on his heel and takes off down the hall, the rest of the team following behind him as he does. His umpire, Benny gives him one last almost sad glance before he too turns and moves behind his team mates.

As soon as they're out of sight Dean is greeted with a small round of applause from the surrounding students before they're all moving off to their own classes, quickly losing interest in whats going on in the hall. He turns to Cas then and lets his eye's rake over him, worrying pooling in his iris'. Cas gives him a small, shy smile before reaching up to rest a hand on his shoulder. "I'm okay Dean. Thank you for coming to my rescue. I fear that they may have hurt me if you hadn't." He let's out a soft sigh and turns to his locker once again, leaving Dean to look at the back of his head. His jaw clenches tightly in outrage as he secretly looks Cas over once more. "Are you sure you're ok? He didn't hurt you did he? Brady can be a real asshole." Cas turns back to look at him then, a soft smile playing at his lips. "I swear to you, I'm fine. I can't say that I understand why it is they decided that I was a target exactly, but there's nothing to be done about it now." He gives a nonchalant shrug that goes right through Dean, stoking the angry fire resting in his chest. "Cas, you've got to take this more seriously man. He could have really messed you up if he'd wanted to. He's not a weak guy by any means, and he means what he says about making our lives a living hell. We can't be to careful around him."

Cas bites down on his lower lip, worrying it between his teeth a second before letting out a deep sigh and running his now trembling fingers through his already messy hair. "A-Alright, what do we do then? I don't know what I did in the span of 20 minutes to upset him so badly but I wish that I did so that I could refrain from doing so again." He gives Dean one of his small smiles and grabs a book from his locker before shutting it and spinning the lock a few times to reset it. Suddenly a thought strikes Dean and he nearly smacks himself in the head. "Wait a minute, what are you even doing here Cas? I thought your Dad was against public school?" Cas' face lights up with Deans sudden realization and the little giggle that falls from his lips has Dean nearly blushing in the middle of the almost empty school hallway.

"Oh, I um, I may have convinced him that it may be beneficial for me to attend school here, so that I can convert as many sinners to the church as I possibly can." The smirk that grows on his face is smug and mischievous and Dean absolutely loves it. Especially considering that there's a matching one sitting on his face right now. "Wow Cas, I didn't know you had all of that trickery in you. I'm almost proud. Now, let me see your schedule so that I can see if we have any classes together." Cas digs around in his binder for a moment before pulling out a rumpled piece of paper, it's obvious from the wrinkles and creases that he's pulled this out may times already; knowing Cas it was probably more of a reflex than anything, he's already wicked smart and has a practically photogenic memory. Dean glances down at the paper now sitting in his own hand and scans through all of the classes that his best friend will have that day. His eye's light up when he see's three of the classes which match his own and he sighs lightly in relief.

"We have three classes together today, sweet. Third, fifth and seventh period. Looks like you've got Mr. Lockheart for first period, he's kind of a hard ass and there's like two minutes until the bell rings so you might wanna hoof it there. Do you know where it is? If not, I can show you the way. I could probably get a note from the secretary Missouri. She seems to like me on her good days." He watches as Cas' eye's widen at his mention of Mr. Lockheart and can't help but to chuckle, a fond smile playing on his lips, even as Cas speaks in a hurried panic. "I...I believe I know where his class room is located. Oh, Dean I don't want to get a detention on my first day in a real school! I need to go, now." He yanks the piece of paper from Deans hand and gives him a frantic smile as he darts off down the hall. Dean is left watching his back as it dissapears around the corner, shaking his head in amusement and sighing. "Okay, Cas, see you later."

His first two classes of the day were utterly boring, so much so that he actually remembers falling asleep in one of them; that is until one of his friends, Charlie Bradbury, decided that it would be a good idea to poke him as hard as humanly possible in the rib cage with her pointy elbow. So when third period rolls around he's way more excited than he should be to see Cas' face again. He makes sure to meet him at his locker again, now that he knows where it is, so that he can walk him to class like the gentleman he is. When he reaches Cas' locker what he see's there makes him pause, leaning up against the metal frame, batting her eyelashes as Cas grabs the books he'll need from his book bag, is Meg Masters; school flirt and all around bad person. Cas smiles down at her with all of the innocence of a pastors son and Dean nearly growls. So instead of turning around and finding his own way to class like his jealous mind is telling him to do, Dean strides forward, stopping just in front of Meg and beside Cas. His eye's narrow as he takes in her tight, jean clad form; the smirk on her lips making the hot rage boil in his stomach. He barely manages to keep the giant ball of anger under wraps as he looks over at Cas, a tight lipped smile on his face as he get's the slightly shorter boys attention.

"Hey Cas, how was your first morning in a real school?" Even to him his voice sounds off, strained somehow, and Cas picks up on it immediately. The little crease between his brows deepens as he searches Dean's eyes for any sign of what the issue might be. When he comes up empty his smile falls into a deep frown, head tilting to the side in confusion. "My morning has gone quite well, aside from the incident this morning. I'm sorry, is there something wrong? You seem tense." The concern that leaks into his eye's causes Deans anger to fumble a bit, losing some of its steam as he sighs. "I'm fine Cas, are you ready for class?" His eye's dart over to Megs now grinning face. The smile on her features isn't friendly but Cheshire like and it sends a shiver of unease up his spine. He forces himself to turn back to his best friend as he closes his locker door and turns fully to face Dean. "Yes, I'm ready." He turns to Meg then, a soft friendly smile on his lips. "Thank you Meg, I appreciate your kind gesture but I can walk with Dean from here. I assure you that my safety is in good hands."

Meg raises on finely trimmed eyebrow before pushing herself off of the lockers and crossing her arms over her chest. "If you say so Clarence, but if you need me you know where to find me." She gives Dean an appraising look before throwing her hand up in a lazy wave and moving down the hall to her next class. Deans eyes find Cas once more and his fake smile drops into a natural frown. "Cas, Meg is bad news man. You gotta be careful around her okay? She's not exactly known for her kind heart. If she's doing something nice for you chances are she's got some kind of hidden motive." Realization flits over Cas' face, a smug smile replacing his former look of concern. "Ah, I see what's happening here." He reaches forward and rests a hand on Deans shoulder before continuing on with his theory. "You're jealous." This part he whispers, so that nobody else can hear him and Dean nearly bursts into fits of laughter. "Yeah, okay. If that's what you think. Man, I'm just trying to look out for you. It doesn't matter though, let's just get to class before we're late." The soft red that stains Deans cheeks is like a red hot brand, shooting heat through his entire body as he ducks away from Cas to make his way down the hall. The soft chuckle from behind him only makes his cheeks darken more and he feels the need to verbally groan in response.

"Just come on you dork." He pushes through the crowded hall way, some people moving out of his way as he goes, others shooting half hearted glares to the back of his head. Cas trails only inches behind him as he goes, a knowing smile on his face the entire way to their History class room. The three periods they share together are History, Art and PE so this may be the only class of the day where he can just sit and admire Cas' features from his seat with out having to make the effort of not making a fool out of himself in front of this gorgeous boy. It only makes it better that their teacher, whom everyone refers to as Marv, is an easily excitable man. Dean darts into the nearly empty class room and takes his usual seat in the back. Cas hesitates for a moment before scanning his eye's over the few people that are scattered in the class room seats already. His eyes land on Charlie who is seated directly beside Dean, already pulling out her latest map plan of Moondor, the imaginary land that she rules over in their weekly LARPing sessions, that he would never admit to attending AND enjoying.

He lifts his hand and gives Cas a little wave, motioning him over to the seat in front of him. He complies and slides shyly into the desk, sitting his books on the wooden surface and then turning to face Dean, a light blush on his face. Dean grins back at him and waves his hand over at Charlie. "Cas this is one of my best friends, Charlie Bradbury. Charlie, this is Cas, my um...my best friend." Deans cheeks color pink once more as the word boyfriend nearly slips from his mouth. Charlie smirks knowingly at Dean and nods her head, sticking her hand out for Cas to shake. "Heya Cas, Dean just won't stop talking about you. Glad to know you're a part of our little club." She drops him a wink, filled with innuendo and he tilts his head in puzzlement. "I um, I'm not sure what you mean. I wasn't aware that I was a part of any club." Charlies giggle causes more heat to rise to Cas' cheeks and Dean nearly has to bang his head on the desk because its probably the cutest thing he's ever seen in his life. Instead though he just clears his throat to get Cas' attention and points with his eye's down to where his finger is spelling it out on the wooden table. 'G-A-Y' over and over again.

It doesn't take long for Cas to realize what it is that Deans spelling out and when he does he inhales sharply through his nose. "Oh, well yes. It's a very small club but I think I prefer it that way." She shoots him a knowing grin and shrugs. "Don't worry, the passwords safe with me. As long as you don't tell anyone what my password is." Another realization hits Cas then and he gasps quietly. "Oh! Oh, I understand." He turns to Dean with a wide grin and opens his mouth to speak just as a frantic Marv practically runs into the the room, papers scattering from his arms in a heap and fluttering about the floor in a huge avalanche. His beady eyes widen in shock as he basically falls to his knees to attempt to clean the mess up. Cas is out of his seat in a second, scooping some of the fallen papers up into his own arms and straightening them out before piling them on to his desk, an attempt to help the frazzled teacher. Marv glances up at him, glassy eyes looking but not seeing the brown haired boy in front of him. Instead of thanking Cas like he should he lets his eyes snap back down to his mound of papers. He gathers the remaining sheets up and flops them down on to his desk in frustration, Cas moving slowly forward to lay the papers that he collected on to the pile. Marvs eyes dart up to him and narrow in a glare, causing Cas to skitter away from him and back to his seat, curling into himself.

Dean opens his mouth to say something increasingly rude to their teacher but before he gets the chance the tiny man is jumping from his chair once again to pace in front of the room. "Alright! Pop quiz! I want to see what you've learned the past week! Nobody will be excused from this so don't even ask." He takes the still ram shackled papers and plops a stack on to each desk at the front of the rows. Each student takes one and then passes it back. When they get to Cas he hesitates and takes one off of the top, his face ghostly white. He hands the last paper back to Dean and swallows with an audible click. Dean leans forward so that he can whisper in his ear. "Don't worry Cas, Marv isn't that bright to begin with. His test are always really easy and if you have any trouble just tap your desk three times with your pencil and I'll slide you an answer." He drops him a wink and sits back in his seat once again, pulling a pencil out of the pouch attached to his binder.

Like he had suspected, the pop quiz is a piece of cake and he finishes it in record time. The rest of the room follows shortly after, Cas having apparently no problems with the test, and Marv takes up the finished works, dismissing the class entirely after that. Dean hops up from his seat, grabbing his bag and nudging Cas with his shoulder. "Hey, I'll see you in fifth? I think we have art that period. You'll like our Teacher. His names Chuck and he's pretty laid back." Cas gives him a curt nod and a small secret smile before shuffling out the door with the rest of their class. Dean waves goodbye to Charlie before following suit and losing himself in the crowd of students. He drops off his unneeded books at his locker and picks up the ones he does need before heading off to English class with Mrs. Mills.

Fourth period flies by, followed closely by their art class sixth period. Neither of which are eventful in any way. It's when they get to the gym locker rooms to change into their PE clothes that things get interesting, because Dean can never just have a normal day when he's with Cas. Both boys move to different changing areas, for obvious reasons, and get quickly changed into loose shorts and t-shirts. They meet back up in the main locker room to put their other clothes away, in lockers right beside each other. Neither of them noticing a figure coming up behind them until Cas' head is already being slammed into the unforgiving metal of his gym locker. Dean jumps up from his position putting on his sneakers and growls, grabbing the hulking form of Brady up by his letter man jacket and slamming him against the wall behind him. He doesn't see Cas getting up from his position, or the little trail of blood seeping from his head. He doesn't see Brady's cronies surrounding them and he doesn't see the fist that comes flying through the air, landing on his jaw with a sickening crack. His hold on Brady drops instantly as the rock hard fist makes contact with his face again, his nose spurting out a small fountain of blood.

"Fuck! What the hell is wrong with you?!" He turns to face his attacker and sees Victor with a satisfied smirk on his face, fist curled into a ball and knuckles split where he hit Deans cheek bone at full speed. Dean lunges for him then, eye's seeing nothing but red rage. He barely registers Cas standing there with wide, terrified eyes as he lands a punch right to Victors jaw. The other boy stumbles back and into Benny, the latter stepping to the side so that his team mate lands ungracefully onto the floor by his feet. With a look of complete betrayal Victor scrambles to his feet once more and advances on Dean, his two favorite cronies takes either of Deans arms to twist behind his back. He lets out a pained cry and falls to his knee's under the pressure. "Fuck! Let go of me what the hell?! What exactly did he do to you to make you hate him so much?!" This is when Brady steps up again, a cold glare in his dark eyes. "He shows up to our school looking like the nerd he is and expects to get away with it. You know what we do to nerds around here Winchester, and now you're no exception. Before I could let you slide because you're a damn good pitcher and a decent captain, but not anymore. Not when you're determined to stick up for the geek." As he speaks he moves closer to Deans kneeling figure, he raises a sneaker clad foot above Deans head and brings it crashing down onto his nose, blood splattering everywhere as his nose bone gives a sickening crack.

Cas lets out an almost strangled cry at the same time as the gym teacher blows his whistle to signal the start of class. Brady curses and lowers his foot, looking around at the remainder of the baseball team. "Alright boys, looks like this party's over for now. Let's get out of here before someone comes in and finds them like this." He turns on his heel as the two brutes on either side of Dean release him, letting him fall to the floor in a heap. Cas is by his side immediately, not paying any attention to the single person that has stayed behind to help. Benny walks cautiously over to the two and bends down, offering Dean a hand down to hold to his nose. Cas takes it instead and presses it to the obviously broken bone. "Thank you Benny, that is very kind of you." He offers the bigger man a small smile, the light of it not reaching his eyes in the slightest. "You had better get back to your team before they realize that you're missing and start taking it out on you as well." Benny releases a sad sigh and nods his head in confirmation. "Yeah, I probably should. Look Brotha, I'm sorry they're doin' this to you. You don't deserve it, neither of ya. Just, try and stay outta his way okay?" He stands from his kneeling position and gives Dean and Cas a single salute before turning on his heel and jogging out of the gym locker room.


End file.
